I slowly opened my eyes. Sunlight pierced through the canopy, striking my eyes and forcing me to squint.
Around me… was a strange forest.
The leaves were as white as snow, swaying in the wind, producing a faint rustling sound—like whispers in an unfamiliar tongue.
I looked around in bewilderment and thought.
"I… clearly remember being in my bedroom… Why am I here? Could it be… I've transmigrated?"
I looked down. My clothes had changed into an old, ragged cloak I had never seen before.
My hands… weren't my own. Thin bones, pale skin, stiff joints.
"This… isn't my body. No, this body has nothing to do with me at all."
A chilling thought crossed my mind.
"Could it be… I died in my previous life? In my room… from overwork… and this is where my soul has fallen?"
I inhaled deeply.
"First… I need to understand the situation."
Pressing my hands to the ground, I tried to stand, but the body was heavy as if weighed down by stones. My legs trembled before collapsing onto the layer of rustling white leaves.
"Has this body… been dead for a long time? No… it's still warm… but…"
My vision dimmed.
"Don't tell me… this body is crippled?"
I tried again, learning from the fall. Slowly… step by step… the body remained stiff, but at least I managed to stand.
A cold wind blew past, carrying a faint metallic stench. Before I could trace its source—
SWISH!
A sound echoed from deep within the forest.
The rustling… something was crawling quietly through the white leaves.
"Maybe… it's just my imagination…"
I tried to reassure myself, but my heart pounded faster.
This body… was far from normal.My left leg barely moved properly. My right arm trembled so badly I could hardly grip anything.
I closed my eyes, then opened them again.My right eye was clouded, vision obscured by a gray haze—like it was losing light, soon to go blind completely.
I touched my face. Cold. Gaunt. I couldn't see what I looked like. No reflection around to confirm.
Another noise—closer this time. Branches snapping. A chill ran down my neck.
"…!?"
==================================
⟨⟨Character Information⟩⟩
Name: Rauthen
Level: 1
Class: (Unassigned)
Condition: Weak / Crippled Body
[Stats]
HP: 35 / 35
MP: 0 / 0
Strength: 2
Agility: 1
Intelligence: 5
Endurance: 3
Reflex: 2
Dexterity: 1
[Resistances]
Magic Resistance: 0
Spell Resistance: 0
Physical Resistance: 0
[Skills]: NoneTalent
NoneGifts: LockedElemental
Affinity: Locked
[Performance Metrics]
Melee Power: 27 / 1000
Movement Speed: 15 / 1000
Endurance: 30 / 1000
Evasion: 12 / 1000
Defense: 8 / 1000
Stamina: 25 / 1000
Vision: 40 / 1000
Accuracy: 18 / 1000
Recovery: 22 / 1000
Tactical Intelligence: 410 / 1000
Environmental Adaptability: 55 / 1000
Fighting Spirit: 320 / 1000
Win Rate vs. Special Species: 0 / 1000
Win Rate vs. Humans: 0 / 1000
Win Rate vs. Other Races: 0 / 1000
Wilderness Survival Rate: 12 / 1000
==================================
I stepped deeper into the eerie forest. The air grew thick, swirling with crimson mist that looked like blood.
Each step was heavy, my crippled legs dragging, yet I had no choice but to move forward.
"Like a maze… strange, not even a single bird…"
Around me were jagged rocks, broken branches—snapped violently by something unseen.
"It's still morning… safer now. If night falls… it might be my 'third life' already…"
Then, cutting through the suffocating silence, came a weak voice.
"Someone… help me… please… is anyone there…?"
A trembling, fragile voice of a girl. My heart pounded as I followed the sound.
Through the crimson mist, I saw her—a blonde girl in tattered military uniform, holding a bloodstained pistol.
She lifted her head, emerald eyes filled with despair and panic.
But… something was wrong.
The mist around her thickened unnaturally. She didn't blink. Her clothes were torn, but her skin bore no open wounds. Only dirt, dried stains… and thin red veins creeping from her neck to her hand.
No. This wasn't normal.
I stepped back, throat dry.
Suddenly, her legs sank into the soil, merging with black roots.
Behind her, a massive tree emerged from the blood mist, bark splitting open, oozing thick, dark-red sap like blood.
And I realized—the girl wasn't trapped. She was part of it.
Her human skin… only a disguise. Every twitch was nothing more than puppet strings of wooden sinew.
A monster. And it wanted me.
"Help me… please…"
Another voice rang out, firm and steady, male.
"Don't worry. I'll save you."
"Wait… wait, you—"
Before I could finish, instinct drove me.
I grabbed a heavy stone, nearly 7 kg, trembling, sweat dripping down my back.
I lifted it—
CRACK!!!
The rock slammed into her head. Blood and red fluid splattered, spraying across my face.
Panting, I thought it was over.
But the body convulsed—skin splitting, exposing twisted roots inside. A root speared toward me.
SHNK!!!
It pierced my shoulder. Blood burst out, hot and wet.
"…h-huh?"
Pain followed.
"AAAAAAAA!!!"
Agony burned through every nerve. My right eye blurred, ears rang, breath came in short gasps.
From the monster's trunk, countless roots slithered out like serpents, coiling toward my limbo.
I'm going to die.
And then—
SLASH!!!
A silver flash tore through the crimson mist.
A figure landed lightly before me. Long white hair flowing, black cloak billowing like raven wings.
In her hand, a slender blade gleamed with the blood of severed roots.
Without a word, she raised her arm, hidden beneath oversized sleeves. Her lips moved, chanting in a low, steady tone.
"Blood's essence, rise and shape as a weapon, destroy the corrupted roots, and restore the one whole—"
Blood-red glyphs appeared in the air, forming a blazing magic circle.
⟨⟨ Bloodburst Detonation (Tier 7) — Blood Element ⟩⟩
BOOOOOOM—!!!
A torrent of blood shot from her sleeve, crystallizing into hundreds of crimson spikes that impaled the monster's bark. It screamed, roots recoiling away from me.
I collapsed onto the cold ground, breath ragged. My wound had stopped bleeding… not by my strength, but from her blood flowing into me, sustaining me.
"Th… thank… you…"
I whispered weakly.
The white-haired girl gave no reply. Her emerald eyes stayed cold, unreadable.
And then—
THUD!
A sharp strike to the back of my neck. Darkness swallowed me.
As I drifted into unconsciousness, I felt my body lifted, dragged across the forest floor.
The sound of dry leaves, snapping branches, and the metallic scent of blood all blended into a suffocating silence.